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CLEVELAND — Outspoken closer Chris Perez said he thinks the Indians need a more intense manager
and better players.

Perez said yesterday that Cleveland’s second-half collapse was embarrassing and the laid-back
approach of former manager Manny Acta didn’t help.

“August wasn’t baseball, it was pathetic — in all aspects,” Perez said about Cleveland’s 5-24
slide that came after losing nine of its last 12 games in July.

Acta was fired on Thursday and replaced by bench coach Sandy Alomar Jr. on an interim basis.

“I’m not saying that a change earlier would have done anything,” Perez said a few hours before
the Indians defeated the Chicago White Sox 4-3 on Jason Donald’s RBI single in the 12th inning. “
But sometimes we pressed the panic button. Why? A lot of things left you kind of scratching your
head.”

Alomar doesn’t mind Perez being outspoken and said his occasional outbursts are not detrimental
if you understand his mindset. Alomar pointed out that Cleveland had controversial players while
winning five consecutive American League Central championships in the 1990s.

“That’s what drives him,” Alomar said. “He’s an All-Star player and in the clubhouse he’s
everybody’s friend, always talking. On the field, it’s a little different.”

Alomar said Perez’s passion to win sometimes leads him to go overboard. He would not want to
douse that competitive fire.

That’s fine with Perez, who said he hopes whoever is hired as manager will match his intensity.
He said either Alomar or Terry Francona, who led the Boston Red Sox to two World Series titles,
would be a better fit than Acta. Alomar is scheduled to interview for the full-time job on
Thursday; Francona on Friday.

Perez said that watching Acta not argue with umpires or get angry with underperforming players
led to his own frustrations boiling over in comments to the media earlier this season. Perez
insisted he likes and respects Acta, but disagreed with some of his decisions. Most of all, he
wanted him to take a stronger stand in the dugout and the clubhouse.

“He’s not very confrontational,” Perez said. “We are men, we can handle it. Last year, he had
two speeches — on opening day and the last day.”

Despite Cleveland’s bad second half, Perez said he thinks the Indians have a good foundation on
which to build. They led the Central for 40 days, until June 23. A gradual fade turned into an
all-out collapse to last place.

Perez said he had a “very professional” conversation with general manager Chris Antonetti and
came away with a better understanding of the organization’s plans. He said he wants to stay in
Cleveland and be part of a winner.

“If I didn’t want to play here, the easiest way to get out was to tank,” Perez said. “I didn’t.
They have control of me (under contract) for two years, and while I’m here, I want to win.”

In the victory over the White Sox last night, Donald’s single scored the winning run with two
outs in the 12th. Lonnie Chisenhall doubled with one out against Matt Thornton (4-10), who then
intentionally walked Russ Canzler.

Right-hander Nate Jones came on to face pinch hitter Matt LaPorta, who was then replaced by
left-handed batter Jack Hannahan. Jones struck him out before Donald hit a liner into the
left-field corner.